Pledge to Stop Puppy Mills!

Tuesday, September 14, 2010

A Show of Paws: Who's Ready for Autumn?


Image courtesy of Stock.xchng, copyright István Benedek.

Crisp leaves, apple cider, pumpkin pie and bonfires. The images that come to mind with the changing of the seasons is limitless. If you're a pet lover, chances are the colder weather brings to mind the thought of your beloved companion cuddled up on your lap or by your feet as the weather chills. The first fall days also bring a few notable safety tips for dogs and cats alike. Keep your companion animal safe and healthy by remembering a few key points.
  • Provide your pets with a warm space. While keeping your pets indoors is ideal, it isn't possible for every owner. If you have an outdoor feline, make sure he or she has access to a warm, enclosed space during colder weather - consider leaving your garage door open to provide access, if no other option exists. The same goes for your pooches, too. If, for some reason, keeping them indoors during inclement weather is unfeasible, make sure they have a warm enclosure that is sheltered from the elements and warm bedding.
    Click here for plans to build a heated dog house!
  • The weather is growing colder. For animals exposed to the outdoors, this means their coats are growing thicker and they're gearing up for winter. More calories are consumed as animals with an eye for the outdoors ready themselves for the cold weather ahead. Don't be surprised if your pet has the need for extra energy and food, too, or at least if it seems that way after a lull in the feeding frenzy due to the warm weather of summer!
    Learn more about a dog's energy requirements. Learn more about feeding your cat the right stuff.
  • If your dog primarily lives indoors, think about getting some cold weather gear. If the ground is too cold for you to touch without gloves on, it's probably too cold for your pup's paws. If you have a dog with a short or thin coat, or you engage in outdoor activities with your dog for extended periods of time in cold or wet weather, consider a doggie sweater. Your pet will thank you.
    If you're handy with a pair of knitting needles or a crochet hook, use one of these patterns to make your pup something special: A Knit Dog Sweater pattern is fairly simple for knitters, while a crochet dog sweater pattern is ideal for "happy hookers."
  • Everyone wants to be indoors when it's cold, even your friendly neighborhood pests. Keep an eye out for scavengers seeking to dodge the chill, but keep an even closer eye on chemical toxins meant to control scavenger populations. Rat poison is incredibly toxic for dogs. Fall is the time of year when these toxins become more readily available: make sure Fido doesn't grab ahold of these potentially lethal items while you're not looking. And just because you don't use chemical poisons on your property doesn't mean your pet can't still get ahold of them: your neighbors may have rat poison or other toxins stashed where Fido or Fluffy has access to them.
    Read more on rat poison and pets.
  • If you've been avoiding outdoor activity in favor of more climate-controlled options, the crisp fall weather is the perfect time to get back into the swing of things. Brush up on your dog's basic training before taking advantage of the weather. Going back to the basics is a good reminder for everyone.
    Find out what the Humane Society of the United States has to say about dog training basics!
  • If you're a gardener, chances are you're gathering and planting bulbs that will grow and bloom in spring. Remember that some plants or even just some PARTS of plants are toxic to your companion animals. For example, tulip bulbs contain a toxin that causes stomach upset, drooling, loss of appetite, lethargy, heart problems, convulsions and central nervous system depression. Yikes! While your cat may think it's fun to help you in the garden, limit your pet's gardening "expertise" to plants that are pet-safe.
    Take a gander at the American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals' "Poison Control Center" plant database.
  • Watch out for those snakes. Autumn is a high activity time for these critters, and they may be a more easily excitable than other times of the year: they're preparing for a season of hibernation. Keep an eye out for slithery snakes in your backyard. Take the time to learn about a new species of wild friend or, for the less reptile-inclined, brush up on your pet first aid skills!
    Click here to read more about the reptiles of Ohio or visit here to brush up on your first aid for pets.

  • Keep an eye on your child's school supplies. While a glue stick or pack of colored pencils may not look like a tasty treat in our eyes, your dog or cat may feel differently! While most typical school supplies are considered low-toxicity for both people and animals, these educational tools can still cause problems for our pets. If you suspect your pet has gotten ahold of your darling son or daughter's set of pens or wire notebook binding, call your vet. He or she can help you sort it all out and provide assistance if needed.
    Click here for a list of veterinarians in and around Athens County.

  • I knew a mushroom once, he was a fun guy (fungi!). Fall is mushroom season all across the United States. While some people love nothing more than to go searching the woods for tasty edible treats, plenty of lethal mushrooms crop up on lawns, posing a threat to our furry friends. If you're unsure of what mushrooms you've got growing, don't chance it. Some of the most toxic 'shrooms are identical to the tasty ones!
    Learn more about Ohio mushrooms here.

  • If you have a car enthusiast or do-it-yourself mechanic in the family, they may very well be changing the coolant in vehicles in preparation for dropping temperatures. Propylene glycol is touted as a safer car coolant than ethylene glycol - and it is, to a point. While ethylene glycol is more deadly to pets, propylene glycol coolants can still cause some problems. Encourage friends and family to dispose of coolants in a safe and sanctioned manner. Clean up spills promptly.
    Learn more about pets and antifreeze poisoning here.


  • Take charge of your pet's health. While humans are worried about the flu and stomach bugs, the change in seasons may mean your dog feels a little bit under the weather, too. Make sure your pet is up to date on his or her vaccinations and discuss spaying or neutering with your veterinarian if you haven't already done so. It provides a number of benefits to your furry friend!
    Click here to learn about the benefits of spaying or neutering your pet. Click here to find out more information on the Athens County Humane Society's low cost spay/neuter clinics.

    Above all else, have a safe and happy autumn!

Sunday, September 12, 2010

Adoption Spotlight: Jack and Fritz


Note: In the interests of honesty, the author of this blog post may be a little bit biased in her description of these two cats...She's housing them!



This is Jack. Don't let the photos fool you - Jack is as rambunctious as they come. He's a gray and white male. He has been neutered and is up to date on all of his vaccinations. Jack is flea and worm free. Jack is convinced he's a tiger in a house cat's body. He is fearless and will attack bugs, string, laser pointers and furniture that steps out of line. He loves to explore and isn't phased by anything. He even runs with the two dogs in the household and has no problem playing with cats much bigger and older than he is. Jack is always on the go, but he's never too busy to curl up and take a cat nap or cuddle with you. He'll warm your toes and your heart.


This is Fritz. Fritz is a shy, quiet sweetheart. He's a black male who, when exposed to very bright sunlight, has subtle stripes of brown. Fritz has been neutered and is up to date on all of his vaccinations. He is flea and worm free. Fritz is the exact opposite of his brother - he's always ready for some loving downtime. He's a big cuddler and is always the first in line for kisses when his foster mummy comes home. Fritz is curious - he has a way of exploring the most curious places and tends to get stuck.

Jack and Fritz are brothers. They are just over four months old as of September 12. Even though they are brothers, they do not need to go to the same home. They can be adopted separately.

Both boys were part of a litter of feral cats, but you would never know it. Their mother did not survive, so both were raised by hand and were bottle fed when younger. Their initial rescuers could not keep them due to a conflict in the house - a dog presumed Fritz was a chew toy. He has suffered no lasting consequences.
Neither cat has problems interacting with cats, dogs, kittens, puppies and even babies. They were perfectly behaved even under the watch of a three year old.

To adopt Jack or Fritz, please contact their foster mother, Caitlin, DIRECTLY, rather than calling the Athens County Humane Society. She can be reached at 215-900-9490 or via e-mail at caitlin.seida@gmail.com.


Their Petfinder Page, courtesy of the Athens County Humane Society, is viewable here.

Not sure if you're ready to adopt a cat? Here's a list of things to think over before getting a pet.

Absolutely sure you want to adopt but don't think Jack or Fritz are for you? Check out the Athens County Humane Society's list of adoptable pets. There's someone for everyone.

Monday, September 6, 2010

How Much Is This Going to Cost?


Image courtesy of http://www.sxc.hu/profile/bjearwicke
copyright
Benjamin Earwicke under a Creative Commons License.

Spend any amount of time in a veterinary office an you're guaranteed to hear a question that makes most animal health professionals groan internally. The question, seemingly innocuous, is "How much is this going to cost?"

The problem lies not with the question itself - but how it is phrased. Suspend reality for a moment and imagine your dog or cat as a car. Would you bring a car to the mechanic for an unknown issue and ask for a price before the mechanic had a chance to assess what's wrong? In the same way, animal health professionals dread the question of price because they can't give you a solid figure without figuring out what's wrong - animals can't speak to humans with language, telling us exactly where it hurts and what type of pain it is. Neither can cars.

Both situations require more delicacy and expertise to find the cause of a problem than if, for example, a fully grown adult were to go to a clinic and ask to be seen for a sprained ankle. What appears to a caring, concerned owner as something minor may, in fact, turn out to be much more serious of an issue.

So what should you ask instead? If you're facing a medical emergency or are visiting your veterinarian for a specific problem, you should ideally be focused on the problem at hand and not the sometimes substantial cost incurred. The best time to inquire about the price of emergency medical care is NOT when an emergency arises, but during the times everything is okay.

The American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals suggests owners of small dogs squirrel away about $210 every year for recurring medical costs. Medium dogs require slightly more in terms of monetary investment - about $235 a year. Large dogs cost an average of $260 a year in routine medical care, and cats generally cost a bit less to maintain - about $160 a year in routine medical costs.

Start up a small savings fund for your pet's care. Plan to spend between $160 and $260 a year on things like an annual wellness exam, routine vaccinations, heart-worm preventative and flea and tick preventative. And it's worth it in the long run - even the American Animal Hospital Association (AAHA) agrees that spending annual routine care costs cuts down on emergency care later. Maintaining a regular history with your vet ensures that, when routine blood work does come back with a problem or Fluffy really doesn't feel well, both you and your veterinarian are able to agree that something is not right and catch potentially life-threatening issues earlier than might otherwise be possible.

Sure, in a perfect world every animal would have adequate veterinary care. But again, it isn't a perfect world and problems arise. What about when the proverbial litter box scoopings REALLY hit the fan? It's a question that's hard to answer based on a lot of variables, making the question "how much is this going to cost?" just that much more frustrating.

Internet advice articles abound telling pet owners exactly how much to plan for in the event of an animal emergency. Like all good advice, you get what you pay for. Setting an arbitrary number is a good starting point, but isn't always accurate. Some website advise you to squirrel away as little as $1000, while others suggest you keep a rolling account, placing $25 aside and into that account every week, much like you would a child's college fund.

Out of the two options that seem to be favored among the Internet's armchair experts, the second is closer to the mark. $25 each week equals out to just over $1300 a year, enough to cover some, but not all, emergencies. Most animals never encounter an emergency each year, but you'll never know when one will hit. And the idea is to be prepared for when an emergency does occur.

The problem of the price knowledge gap comes, in part, because a lot of pet owner's don't understand the true cost of what goes into caring for their animal. There's always a base exam fee - the money a veterinarian charges just for you being in the office. This can be likened to the same fee you pay to see your doctor.

There will almost always be some form of diagnostic testing...Blood work, diagnostic examinations, urine or fecal testing and fluid analysis are just some of the types of testing used to figure out why FiFi keeps throwing up. Since FiFi can't tell us directly what's going on, the doctor needs the aid of these tools to see what exactly is happening.

Even something seemingly as innocuous as a blood draw has money associated with it that may not be readily apparent. The needle and collection tube may only cost the veterinarian about $7. Paying a skilled technician to make the blood draw as painless as possible might cost another $5. Add in a $5 glass slide manufactured to fit the clinic's blood analysis machine and the energy needed to run in-house lab equipment, and you're looking almost $30 or more.

If FiFi needs medication, there's a cost associated with that. The base price the medication costs the clinic might be $2 per pill. The veterinary clinic needs to maintain a very costly license in order to administer those pills. The veterinary technician has to count, bottle and label those pills specifically for your pet in a childproof container with the exact dosage instructions tailored to your needs - not just anyone can do that, even as simple as it seems. For a week's supply of medication that cost the clinic $14, you may be paying $25 or more to cover those very real and necessary costs.

And for those of you wondering why $4 generic medications similar to those at Wal-Mart don't exist for Fido? The manufacturer of the medications sends the drugs pre-packaged to the pharmacy in handy one-month supplies already in their own containers. All the pharmacist has to do is slap a label on...a task that takes less than five minutes on even the busiest of days. Wal-Mart actually loses money on those prescriptions. They're able to recoup it when you spend the next 30 minutes walking around waiting for your prescription to be filled, possibly buying things in the process.


So you've come to the clinic at 3 AM for an emergency. You're already paying a basic exam fee, diagnostic testing fees and any after-hours fees the veterinarian has to charge in order to wake up the entire team in order to treat your animal. The veterinarian then must decide, based upon the diagnostic procedures, what is wrong with your animal. And that's not always easy. Even the simplest things like heart rate can vary wildly among animals of the same species based on age, gender and size. This is why having a regular check-up is important: it establishes what's NORMAL for your individual pet.

And then, the vet has come to a diagnosis. What now? If Fifi needs immediate surgery to save her life, you're looking at some big fees - the money associated with putting Fifi under anesthesia, monitoring her while she's unconscious, the cost of keeping the surgical suite as free of germs as possible (which takes meticulous attention to even the smallest detail. Not only do most veterinarians wear sterile gloves, but also sterile gowns, masks and headgear. If those things come into contact with something un-sterile, they must be replaced for the sake of keeping Fifi as safe as possible. You may balk, but imagine the fit you would have if you caught your child's surgeon wiping his or her nose while taking out YOUR CHILD'S appendix!)

The surgery has gone well and Fifi is in recovery. More costs are incurred because the staff needs to keep an eye on Fifi to ensure she has a successful recovery - anesthesia stays in the body even after someone wakes up, and although the biggest danger is past, Fifi is still at a life-threatening stage.) Medication might be administered to deal with the pain or anxiety associated with surgery. Fluids might be needed, depending on what the issue is.

Are you tired yet? So are the staff. So is Fifi. Take every moment gut-wrenching emotion of fear and anxiety and multiply it by 100 and that's what the staff of the veterinary clinic has just undergone in a very short span of time. Ask yourself if you can put a price on the love, joy and happiness your pet gives you. If you can readily say what that price is, you may be better off investing in a pet rock or sculpture.


Some key points to remember:
  • Don't wait until an emergency happens to start planning for one. It's better safe than sorry and there is no such thing as "too soon." A health emergency can strike any animal of any age at any time. That's why they're emergencies.
  • Keep up with your pet's regular care. Prevention may not be the best cure, but it's the best way to detect possible emergencies before they occur.
  • Speak frankly to your veterinarian about how much he or she charges his or her clients as an after-hours emergency fee.
  • Ask for an estimate. A veterinarian can't provide you with a solid cost because even the veterinarian isn't sure what will be necessary until he or she finds out what is wrong. But most veterinarians should be able to provide you with an estimate to give you a basic idea of the costs involved with the visit.
  • Explore other options, such as pet health insurance, to help offset the cost of care for your companion animal.
  • Ask about alternate payment plans. If you're a client in good standing, your veterinarian may be able to work out a billing plan. Some veterinary offices also allow you to apply for a line of credit to help cover the cost of your pet's care.
  • If you truly cannot afford veterinary care in an emergency situation, the Humane Society of the United States offers a list of organizations that may be able to provide temporary financial aid.